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Trapping Traditions and New Tools For Hunting (Episode 173 Transcript)

This is the video transcript. To watch the video for this episode click here.

GRANT: The results of trapping season are not only many great pelts for Tracy and I to have or give away, but more meat in the future for the Woods family as there should be a more successful rate of fawn survival and turkey poults hatching here at The Proving Grounds.

GRANT: We have showed you this shot in past years or the furs we’ve caught that year, we’re getting ready to send to the tannery and put them on the barn wall for a picture. Each year we remove a total of about 50 predators, including coyotes, bobcats, raccoons and opossums from here at The Proving Grounds. I suspect some folks are going to see our pictures of this video and say, “Oh, my gosh. You’ve wiped the predators out at The Proving Grounds.”

GRANT: It seems like that number would be decreasing with this heavy trapping year after year. That’s clearly not the case and we’ve proven that by our catch being about the same catch per unit effort year after year.

GRANT: The first year, we caught almost half male and female in our trapping effort. Over time, that has changed so this year we caught almost 90% males and 10% females in all the species. We’ve simply reduced most of the resident population of predators here at The Proving Grounds and every year during their mating season, males disperse and move in. So by trapping, we’re reducing the amount of predators on the ground here at The Proving Grounds during fawning, turkey nesting, quail nesting and some bird nesting seasons. But because trapping is a limited activity in the area, no one’s trapping on the neighboring properties that I’m aware of. There’s an ample supply of predators that repopulate my farm year after year.

GRANT: Missouri’s trapping season ends at the end of January. It would be much more beneficial to several other wildlife species if they would extend that to allow us to trap up through March or something like other states throughout the whitetails’ range.

GRANT: Most of the pelts will still be in prime condition and available for the fur market or to give away as gifts as Ms. Tracy and I choose to do. Whether you plan to use trapping as a tool to reduce the predator population or just to gain a few pelts for your collection, it’s really important to remember that fur has been and always will be a renewable resource. It’s something that the people that founded our nation used as a form of commerce, as a way to settle land and to provide an income for their families.

GRANT: You know, trapping’s just one thing you can do after deer season to stay tuned with Creation but another thing is making sure you’ve got good quality minerals out year round.

GRANT: We’ve talked in the past in this show about Liebig’s Law of the Minimum. A very well established scientific principle that basically says all living organisms can only be as productive as the least limiting resource.

GRANT: If you live in an ag production area or have a good fertilizer program on your food plots, you’re taking care of the big macro nutrients like nitrogen, potassium an phosphorous, but I doubt you’re including all the trace minerals in there and that’s where Trophy Rock can pull the quality of your herd up by providing all those trace minerals year round.

GRANT: I’ve used Trophy Rock for years and deer at my property have no problem using it throughout the year. But I’ve heard in some other areas, the deer are a little shy of that big rock when people put it out and I was really happy to see when Trophy Rock started grinding up that product into a new product they call Four65. It’s the exact same mineral content, but it’s ground up in little nuggets and I found that my property that deer readily go to it. And even turkey and other wildlife species readily use it as a source of mineral.

GRANT: So often I work with land owners that really only focus on putting a high quality trace mineral out during the hunting season. And that’s an important management tool. But we need to know that deer are storing minerals in their skeletal system year round to provide milk for fawns and to produce antlers.

GRANT: With all these pre-season activities going on, I still had time to get a little fun in because my new G5 Prime bow arrived this week.

GRANT: Ooooooo. (Laughter) You know, my gun’s got a name. I usually get to know ‘em a little bit before I name ‘em. Stable. Fast and quiet.

GRANT: Most of y’all know I’m an avid bow hunter and the thing I require most out of my bow is accuracy and quietness. Get this Bessie tuned up ‘cause turkey season starts soon. Did you bring those little instructions I stuck down in the…

GRANT: Speed of sound is roughly 800 feet a second, depending on barometric pressure, so it doesn’t really matter if your arrow is going 360 or 340 or whatever it is; animals are gonna hear it and react if you’re shooting a loud bow. And if you’ve been watching the show, you know I had some deer jump string on me throughout the 2012-13 season.

GRANT: So, I spent some time at the ATA show this year shooting bows from different manufacturers and I settled on a G5 bow because it was absolutely the quietest bow I shot.

GRANT: I don’t like them hanging out too much past the bow. Just.

ADAM: Yeah.

GRANT: My good friend and GrowingDeer.tv pro-staffer, Adam Brook is a master at setting up bows, so it was natural for me to boogey on over with Adam and set up my new bow.

GRANT: All right. Let’s go see if it hits the wall.

ADAM: Let’s go fire a dart.

GRANT: It’s past the logo.

ADAM: It’s almost to the point…

GRANT: It’s that far in a solid target.

ADAM: It’s 62 pounds.

GRANT: That’s 62 pounds. We got a chrony in here. All right. Any guesses? 270? 260?

ADAM: 286.

GRANT: 286? You think so? At my short draw? Ready? I wouldn’t stand right there in case that arrow deflects, AJ. So, Adam, here’s our setup. Brand new Impact bow.

ADAM: Yup.

GRANT: 62 pounds. Tested at – I shoot a real open stance, so 27” draw.

ADAM: Yup.

GRANT: I don’t like any clothes in the way; late winter hunt. Shooting a BloodSport 9.1 weight arrow. Still averaging 285 feet per second.

ADAM: That’s incredible.

GRANT: Huge amount of energy.

ADAM: Yeah, that’s crazy.

GRANT: And quiet. You know how sound echoes. You hear my voice echoing all through this little shooting range here. It’s amazing how quiet this is.

ADAM: Without any kind of strings, silencers or anything, uh, the bow’s going to be a dream to shoot, obviously. Because you’re already grouping with it in the first…

GRANT: Seven shots; we were shooting an inch or less group.

ADAM: Yeah.

GRANT: Yeah. I’m ready to go to the field.

ADAM: You’re absolutely right.

GRANT: Actually, I need a little more practice. (Laughter) But I’m gonna be ready to go to the field.

GRANT: I hope trapping season is still open in the state where you hunt. Or maybe you’re taking time to go out and refresh your mineral licks. But whatever you’re doing, take time to consider Creation and communicate with the Creator. Thanks for watching GrowingDeer.tv.